Catching Up- Taupo to Tongariro

Written 10 AM, Oct. 27^th, Whitianga

Posted same afternoon

Friday was great, starting with a gorgeous morning at our campsite on the Waikato River (with a kiwi accent, “WAI-keh-doh”). We got a list of free things to do from the I-Site (standardized information centres in all towns of size across the country) and headed out to Aratiatia Rapids, which is a rapids on the Waikato that is an empty, dry rock gorge most the day, but is filled with rushing whitewater several times a day as the Aratiatia Dam opens its floodgates. We arrived just in time to catch a glimpse of the empty gorge, before it started to fill up. Here's a photo progression of the space filling up:

Photo from downstream, looking back towards the dam. 

 It was really astonishing to stand on the bridge over the dam and watch the water come pouring out, and rise up to fill the whole gorge with beautiful greeny-blue rapids. 

 Kowhai blossoms near the rapids.

In the afternoon, with the wind on the lake still blowing like crazy, we decided to see if we could get a cruise on the Barbary, a 1926 ketch cutter sailboat once owned by Errol Flynn and captained by the extraordinary and colorful Bill Dawson. We were the only people who wanted to go out on the lake in those conditions (sunny, but incredibly windy on the water, with heavy swell), so for $75 for the two of us, we got a private cruise! The boat was great, and the skipper even greater. He has been all over the world, been to Spokane (very near my hometown), farmed in New Zealand, and run this cruise business for the previous 28 years. He is now pushing 70, and seem to have a lot of life left in him! As soon as we had motored out and decided to put up sail, he put Matt at the helm, so M sailed us most of the way out to the Maori rock carvings that were our destination. With Matt at the wheel, Bill was free to feed the pair of ducks that land on Barbary on every crossing, which are obviously his friends and don’t go away until he has given them a couple biscuits, and to make us a cup of tea :)

  

The scenery was great- we could see up to Mts. Tongariro, Ruapehu, and Ngaurahoe, and the rock carvings, though a giant tourist attraction, were sensational. They are not ancient as you might like to think, but were done by a  Maori art student in 1979-80, who wanted to reclaim a section of developed land and give it a dose of Maori culture. The land was a piece that, during colonization, the Maori were duped out of through store debt by anglo settlers.

Post-cruise, we checked back in at the I-Site to see how conditions were looking up on the Tongariro Crossing, and we were told that the forecast was for peak conditions and all systems were go, so we purchased our bus fare, stocked up on food for the trek, and headed south around Lake Taupo to Turangi (TOO-rang-ee), where we would be picked up by the shuttle service bright and early the next morning. We found Turangi to be a sweet little town (it is supposed to be the trout fishing capital of the world, right next to the lake and flanked by the Tongariro River), and were pleased to find a great little place to freedom camp (park the van in an out-of-the-way spot and camp for free) at an anglers’ access point on the Tongariro River.

View from our camping site in Turangi

Catching up- Opotiki to Taupo

Written 9:33 AM, Oct. 27^th, 2010

Harbourside Holiday Park, Whitianga

(Posted same afternoon, free interwebs at the Whitianga Library! )

With a place to charge the computer and a leisurely morning to write, I am endeavoring to post about all that we’ve seen and done in the past week- I’ll try not to make it too much of a novel, and do most of it in pictures.

Let’s see. We left Opotiki last Wednesday morning (a week ago today), loaded down with bags of citrus and avocados and a dozen homegrown eggs. We had a hatching of chicks right before we left:

(Click on photos to enlarge)

Could I be making more of an "awww" face?

We also made a few modifications to the van. I think I already showed you that we gave Lucy a snazzy new paintjob- Matt sanded out the rust in the dent, and we decided to make her into even more of a surfmobile than she already was. Kate had offered up her sanding materials and automotive spraypaint that she had, and it was a pretty fun job:

 We also made a custom sill for the passenger side dashboard, so we could actually keep items there. I did the scrounging of scrap wood, Matt did the measuring and cutting and caulking, and I did the sanding:

 Matt also spent the previous weeks putting together a surfboard bag from a poncho and two small fleece blankets that came with the van. This enables us to store the board under the van at night, poncho-side-down and protect it from scratches.

 We reprovisioned in Whakatane, then headed back to Rotorua, where we had been wanting to visit the bathhouse museum, which turned out to be very well done. The building was historically a set of baths and various treatments of questionable origin, where people came from all over the world to “take the cure” in Rotorua’s geothermally heated waters. The museum building was amazing, with a rooftop balcony and a cinema about the history of Rotorua, complete with shaking and rattling seats to simulate the 1886 earthquake and eruption of Mt. Tarawera, which destroyed the famous pink and white silica terraces and killed 120 people.

 The Government Gardens in front of the Bathhouse

From the roof of the bathhouse

We camped south of Rotorua, then drove to Taupo on Thursday. We went via some backroads at Lyn’s suggestion, to see Orakei Korako, another thermal area that is more off the beaten track. We didn’t pay to go in, since we had already done that at Waiotapu, but had a coffee and checked out the views from across the lake.

Taupo is a huge tourist area in New Zealand, and we hit it just forward of Labour weekend, but managed to avoid most of the masses, and we only spent money on a few big activities that really meant a lot to us. Other than that, we stuck to the free and cheap. On arrival in Taupo, we went to see Huka Falls, where the Waikato River (biggest drainage/river system in NZ) funnels itself through a 10-metre deep rock gorge ¼ the width of the previous riverbed, and goes barreling out over an 11-metre falls at a tremendous rate. It is really awe-inspiring, and has been done up with a nice overlook and then a walking path along the river and falls.

 A view of the Waikato just upstream of the falls.

The Waikarei Geothermal Powerplant, just outside of Taupo. NOT a nuclear reactor! NZ is strictly anti-nuclear.

The weather gods were sending us sudden rain and hail and wind gales, so we opted for the indoor activity of honey and mead tasting in the afternoon J New Zealand is famous for its many types of honey (Manuka is the most famous), and near the falls there was a place with about 15 different flavours of honey to sample, plus a million kinds of mead and honey liqueurs, and Pohutukawa honey ice cream. So we got a little bit honey-high, mostly for free, and also learned a lot about beekeeping and honey-producing, as the site had loads of exhibits about those processes.

We camped at Reid’s Farm, a designated free camping ground on the Waikato River, just out of town, where we whiled away the evening with a few games of cribbage, and woke up to a gorgeous, cloudless morning with very little wind, which was a welcome change from the stormy conditions of the previous week:

Trekking, Driving, Shiring, and Soaking

7:27 PM, Tuesday, October 26th
Whitianga, Mercury Bay, Coromandel Peninsula

I'm totally knackered tonight, so just a quick post to apologize for my radio silence over the last couple days, and to let you know that we sucessfully traversed the Tongariro Crossing on the most beautiful day that could be wished for, soaked in "Magic Mineral Water" at some DOC-owned thermal pools the day after, driven through The Shire (for real), met loads of interesting people, and made our way partway up the Coromandel Peninsula. All in the last four days! I am going to have quite a job bringing the blog up to speed, but rest assured I will do so, and have plenty of photos to post too.

Today has been the most gorgeous of days, treating us like summer, and the highlight of our day was a trip to Hot Water Beach, where, yes, we dug holes in the beach to soak in thermally heated water that just sits there in the sand. And then...we jumped in the ocean for a swim, which was perfectly comfortable and refreshing, not frigidly cold like we are used to in Oregon.

Tomorrow we are headed across the peninsula to our next workstay, but hopefully I will find the time to post a bit in the morning before we leave the holiday park we are camped in here.

100th Post, and Adventures Abound!

5:30 PM, Friday, 22nd October, 2010
Taupo, New Zealand

I just noticed that I'm writing my 100th post! And I'm doing it from the shores of the largest lake in the southern hemisphere, which is pretty cool! We're taking off for the drive around the lake to Turangi soon, so I don't have enough time to bring you totally up to speed on our latest ramblings, but suffice it to say that we have made our way to Lake Taupo, Taupomoana, via Whakatane, Rotorua, and a very large number of backroads and interesting detours. We have hiked, watched sluicegates of a dam open up to fill a formerly dry rapids, sailed to see Maori rock carvings on a 1926 ketch once owned by Errol Flynn, and tomorrow will be undertaking what is considered the best one-day hike in all of New Zealand, the Tongariro (tong-uh-REER-oh) Crossing. We will be up bright and early tomorrow for the busride to Whakapapa. on the sides of Mt. Ruapehu, and the 19km (11ish miles) badass hike across Mt. Tongariro and Mt. Ngaruhoe (spelling?). I'm not sure how to convey how stoked we are- the weather up there has made it impassable for the last couple days, and now it is clear and supposed to remain fine for the next couple days- we seem to have managed to time it perfectly. So that is our next adventure, and I will hopefully bring my blog up to speed after we recover from the hike, hopefully with the help of some hot springs!

In the meantime, here's a few tidbits of our past few days, just to give you some enticing glimpses of what we've been up to:

Click on photos to enlarge.

 The former Rotorua Bathhouse, now a great museum.

 In awe of Huka Falls on the Waikato River.

 Throwing caution into the winds by tempting the black swans on Lake Taupo...

 The custom paint job we gave Lucy- it helps disguise the dent and protect it from rust. Plus, now she looks more like a surfmobile :)

 Sunset at our campsite two nights ago. 

Where we're off to now- from left, Mt. Ruapehu, Mt. Nguaruhoe, Mt. Tongariro

 Me and Skipper Bill on Barbary this afternoon on Lake T.

The skipper put Matt at the helm the whole time we were under sail- we were the only ones brave enough (or stupid enough) to want to go out on the lake in 1 metre seas and 20 knot winds- we had our own personal cruise with the awesome captain who was, well, a character. It was the best $75 we've spent so far. 

And with that, over and out until next time. Wish us luck on the mountain, and thank you all once again for reading, and for all your lovely comments.

Leaving Opotiki

Written 6:52 PM

Monday, October 18, 2010

Posted 8:40 PM Same Day

In an sad and unexpected turn of events, we will be leaving Opotiki and Lyn & Kate on Wednesday morning. We just got word today of a death in Lyn’s family (local), so we are going to clear out earlier than we had planned, to give them the time and space to manage lots of family showing up and planning a funeral, etc. We have been here a full three weeks, and will be sad to leave, on many counts, but it will also be good to move on and see what is next. I am confident that we have taken full advantage of being in this area, done and seen all the things that Opotiki and its environs have to offer, and had the great experience of living in a Kiwi home and helping make a positive impact on the home of our hosts. Lyn & Kate have been the most gracious of hosts, and have done so much for us, from the discount on our White Island trip to advice on which mechanic to take Lucy to, to teaching us about chickens and educating us about Maori culture. We have had our first experiences in animal husbandry, frequented the local surf spot, gotten to know the town, and met many of our hosts’ friends and family. I feel pretty blessed by our experience here.

We had originally planned to take a long weekend away and spend Thursday through early next week exploring the Gisborne area and undertaking the Lake Waikaremoana Track, one of New Zealand’s Great Walks, but the weather report for that area looks to be total rubbish, so we are going to go a different direction and stay in (hopefully) sunny areas. We have no solid plan at the moment, but we will be heading for our next workstay on the Coromandel Peninsula, taking about a week to make the one day journey :) As is our wont, we will take some side trips, explore and surf, and see some new country on the way.

So tomorrow will be our last full day here, so we will be doing our last few hours’ work on the property, then packing and cleaning and getting the van ready for life on the road again. It will be sad to leave a place we are so familiar with now, but I am ready to see some new territory too.

I'll end by giving you a few glimpses into our home of the past three weeks:

(Click on Photos to Enlarge)

 The gorgeous bathroom with unenclosed shower and extra-long clawfoot tub!

 Dining area, Matt at teatime. Kate built the table from Rimu wood.

Matt has been helping dig up this area in front of the house where Kate will be laying down square brickwork forming a giant-sized Scrabble board!

 Bright green farmhouse kitchen.

Lounge with the original ceiling and L&K's custom stenciling (NOT wallpaper)

 Some of my hard work's payoff: a beautiful mulched flower bed. 

 This bed contains entirely NZ native plants.

 Our sunny orange bedroom.

 The front door's Nikau palm stained glass was a wedding gift to Lyn & Kate. 

The fun wigwams that Matt and I built yesterday. We planted vining sweet peas under them. 

My next update will probably be from somewhere out on the road, so here’s to the next adventure!

Latest Photos

 These are the photos I wasn't able to post before, from our jaunt to the Hukutaia Domain on Saturday. Click on the photos to enlarge- these ones have loads of crazy details!

 That's all one vine, wrapped around everything!

Palms, palms, everywhere!

 Massive Puriri tree hosting loads of other plants. 

 Nikau palm.

 Tree roots forming a pool for rainwater. 

A view of the Waioeka Valley from between the trees. 

These are photos of Taketakerau, a 2,000 year old Puriri tree that was once used as a burial tree for bones of distinguished members of the local Maori Iwi (tribe), the Whakatohea (Fahk-a-TOY-uh). The carved figures guarding the tree are called Tekoteko. The designs in the bark and tree were both beautiful and eerie- such a privilege to see this tree.

On the way home, we ran into a New Zealand traffic jam:

And after me wondering forever what these trees are, Lyn told me that they are Norfolk Pines.

They are not native to NZ, but imported from the Norfolk Islands for decorative purposes. The wood is not good for building or burning, so they are not particularly useful besides the fact that they look cool. This one is in Ohope, where we surfed this afternoon, just 30 minutes from "home."